WR Roddy White, Atlanta Falcons

HT: 6-1, WT: 201, Born: 11-2-1981, College: UAB, Drafted: Round 1, Pick 27

2013 Projections

Average draft position

Current as of May 21st. [Full ADP list]

Overall: D Murray (26), P Harvin (27), Roddy White (28), F Gore (29), D McFadden (30)
Position: D Thomas (23-WR6), P Harvin (27-WR7), Roddy White (28 - WR8), A Johnson (31-WR9), L Fitzgerald (32-WR10)
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PPR Average draft position

Current as of May 21st. [Full PPR ADP list]

Overall: D Brees (25), D Murray (26), Roddy White (27), S Jackson (28), D McFadden (29)
Position: P Harvin (23-WR7), A Johnson (24-WR8), Roddy White (27 - WR9), L Fitzgerald (32-WR10), R Cobb (33-WR11)
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Outlook

Roddy White (153 targets for 92/1,351/7 receiving last season) finished 2012 as the 10th-ranked fantasy receiver, after being eigth in the NFL during 2011 (191 targets for 100/1,296/8 receiving). White and Julio Jones are locked in as receivers #1A and #1B heading into the 2013 season - both are likely to finish among the top-12 fantasy wide receivers in the NFL. Even before Jones arrived in Atlanta, White has been a fantasy force, with five straight finishes among the top-10 fantasy wide receivers in the league - he's been in synch with Matt Ryan since Ryan joined the team. White is a stalwart player who hasn't missed a single regular season game during his eight years in the NFL.

2013 Schedule

2012 Game Summaries

Week 1 - White started the game off well but kind of disappeared later. He ran a precise route on a deep hitch for a 15 yard gain for his first catch of the game. His second catch was even more impressive showing great body control to haul in a 16 yard out and stay in bounds. He had two drops later in the game, something he struggled with last season, but still finished with a solid game. It was telling that the Chiefs kept their best corner on Jones and he still had a better day. The torch has been passed in Atlanta, but White is still a very skilled receiver in a prolific offense.

Week 2 - Roddy White looked like the receiver of two years ago in this game as he and Matt Ryan showed off their excellent understanding of each other. White's first target was a difficult reception on a curl route that Ryan threw at his feet. The pass wasn't necessarily bad, because Ryan was making sure not to give the defender on his back any chance of making a play on the football, but it made for a very difficult catch for White that he couldn't coral. White's first catch was an underneath crossing route. He caught the ball four yards down the field before making two defenders miss and diving forward for nine yards. He followed that up with a very difficult pass dragging his toes as he fell out of bounds after running across the formation for a first down. A pair of 21 yard receptions came off of play action as White was wide open on a slant and deep crossing route. On both plays he benefited from blown coverage. Another blown coverage allowed White to pick up his touchdown reception as Tracy Porter froze at the snap when White ran away from him in the endzone. White had plenty of time to set his feet and catch the football with no defender near him by the pylon.

Week 3 - White started off hot, making a leaping grab along the sideline and doing a nice job of keeping the feet inbounds before getting pushed out. He later showed fantastic hands over the middle on a deep slant. The ball was put up high, and White went into traffic to snag it out of the air. In other words, it was typical Roddy White. The stats appear to be minimal, but he was close to so much more. He appeared to have hauled in a 41-yard touchdown late in the first quarter after getting behind the last defender. However, officials ruled that White had pushed off and was whistled for offensive interference. That, along with a negated 9-yard reception earlier in the quarter, turned what could have been a 105-yard, 1 touchdown game into a 55-yard, 0 touchdown game.

Week 4 - Roddy White drove this passing offense for the entire game, it seemed. White was a consistent target all over the field for Matt Ryan, catching everything that his quarterback threw at him apart from one red zone pass that was broken up. The Falcons seemed to target White each time he was matched up against rookie CB Josh Norman, which was often. While Julio Jones drew the attention of CB Chris Gamble, White profited with yards and catches. Ryan and White had excellent rhythm and timing throughout the game, including on the crucial 50+ yard pass down the left sideline with mere seconds to go that set Atlanta up for a late field goal. White showed tremendous ball skills to attack the football in front of the CB. White got into the end zone twice; the first was a well-executed post route off play action. White beat the CB with an outside shake, then used his speed to take the top off the defense. A perfectly lofted pass landed right in his hands. The second score was an equally beautiful pass from Ryan, who dropped the football in over the trailing LB in coverage and in front of the S. White was lined up in the slot on this red zone play, converting it for a 17-yard touchdown. When White wasn’t causing problems downfield, he was a menace in the short to intermediate range of the field for the Panthers. It was a brilliant display from the veteran receiver.

Week 5 - After exploding against the Panthers for one hundred and sixty-nine yards on eight catches in Week Four, White had a rather pedestrian day at FedEx Field, totally sixty-eight receiving yards on four catches. Still, on only six targets, White averaged seventeen yards per catch, and every one of the veteran’s receptions got the Falcons a first down. Interestingly enough, one of receptions came on a swing pass in which White started out in the Falcons’ backfield. Ryan overthrew White badly on a pass up the seam that, against the Redskins, may have resulted in significant yards after the catch and possibly a touchdown. White is no longer Matt Ryan’s primary option in the passing game, but he remains an integral part of Atlanta’s high octane offense.

Week 6 - Roddy White had a solid day of 6 receptions, 72 yards and 1 touchdown. Interestingly, this was the Falcons lone offensive touchdown, as the other was a defensive interception return. Targeted 9 times on the night, White was wide open on several plays, a product of a battered Raiders secondary. There were several times he had a safety on him without a cornerback, which should have been exploited on almost every play that happened. White did have a 31 yard gainer negated by a penalty, a play which he was as open as a wide receiver in the NFL can be. Otherwise, most of the day was standard Roddy White stuff, with shorter and intermediate routes for the most part.

Week 8 - With the Falcons content to run the ball in the inclement Philadelphia weather, White had a quiet Week 8. Catching three passes for thirty-eight yards, White’s longest reception of the day came on a fourteen yard catch-and-run.

Week 9 - White had a sensational game against the Cowboys on Sunday night. Despite the Cowboys rolling a safety to his side on most passing downs, White finished the day with seven receptions on ten targets as quarterback Matt Ryan locked in on him on a number of crucial downs. White primarily ran go routes down the sideline or quick-ins and drag routes across the middle of the field. Despite being double-covered the Dallas defense had little answer for White. His route running and acceleration made him a difficult matchup all game long. His best catch came on 20 yard gain on a quick go-route to the middle of the field. On the play, White received the pass and used his speed to cut through the defense before being tackled by Gerald Sensabaugh. White also drew a defensive holding penalty on deep pass in Dallas territory that resulted in a first down. He also recovered a Matt Ryan fumble when Ryan was sacked in the second quarter. White set the Falcons career receptions mark on a 26 yard reception in the third quarter. As was a running theme, the play came on a deep pass completed against rookie Morris Claiborne.

Week 10 - With Julio Jones spending most of the game against the Saints in the locker room, Matt Ryan absolutely peppered Roddy White with targets. The veteran receiver finished with a whopping 13 targets, catching seven of them for one hundred and fourteen yards through the air. White made his presence felt very early in the game, hauling in a forty-nine yard pass from Ryan on a stutter-and-go route. Saints safety Roman Harper managed to run White out of bounds at the New Orleans one yard line, preventing White from scoring his first touchdown in about a month. While he contributed another big play of twenty-six yards through the air – which set up Tony Gonzalez’s first touchdown catch of the day –most of White’s receptions came on short and intermediate routes underneath, as the Falcons chipped away at a porous Saints secondary. White was the intended end zone target on a Matt Ryan pass that, had he caught it, would have put the Falcons up with under two minutes to go, but Saints cornerback Jabari Greer batted the pass away. Regardless of play calling, though, Matt Ryan seems unafraid to chuck it deep White’s way, which bodes well for more big games down the stretch.

Week 11 - Roddy White was easily the most involved WR for the Falcons on Sunday and he produced at a high level even with all the turnovers that QB Ryan struggled with. White caught a wide variety of routes, most that were designed to get the ball to him in open space and allow him to get yards after the catch. White did drop a ball in the first series however, that ended up being tipped and picked off as a result. White had a shot at a big touchdown pass early aswell but caught the ball out of bounds. White was an excellent chain mover for Ryan who always looked to be open. He made terrific catches on the sideline, with a lot of yards after catch. White is more than just a possession WR as he is also a deep threat that scares defenses. White got downfield on a seam route also and picked up a first down to help seal the game late. White was frequently the #1 read for QB Ryan in this offense and will almost always get the bulk of the targets. WR Jones is the big explosive playmaker but White gets more catches/targets. White is also a good redzone threat but this was not apparent on Sunday.

Week 12 - White's first reception came underneath across the middle as Ryan checked down to him in front of a defender. A curl route on second and 10 went for just five yards, but White had caught it after eight yards and lost yardage trying to beat defenders by going backwards. When the Falcons spread the field with five receivers, White was left alone in single coverage on the outside. He immediately came free on a slant route inside before turning back outside and running down the left sideline for a big gain. White's next reception came in the fourth quarter when he caught a quick curl route underneath for six yards. With the Falcons trying to close the game out, they faced a third and four at midfield with just over two minutes to go. Ryan looked to White, who comfortably caught a slant route for the first down.

Week 13 - Roddy White was playing. The problem? While he was playing, Jabari Greer was playing the football. Towards the end of the third quarter, White caught his first pass on an out route as the Falcons rolled the pocket to his side of the field. White had to fight very hard to come free against Greer, before sliding to catch the football near the goalline.

Week 14 - Roddy White really started to find a rhythm with Matt Ryan at the beginning of the second half as the Falcons went into a two-minute drill. Running crisp routes and reading the leverage of the CB in coverage, White racked up the catches. Ryan found him for a touchdown in the second half as he ran away from a defender in the red zone on a crossing pattern. He almost converted the ensuing two-point attempt, but he failed to maintain control throughout the action. Atlanta’s passing attack was stymied for a good portion of this game by Carolina’s coverage and pass rush. White did not register a catch in the first half.

Week 15 - Roddy White decided to play yesterday despite his injury that kept him out during the week. Lucky for him and Atlanta, WR White was not needed to beat the Giants and he was rarely involved on the field. QB Ryan looked to Jones/Gonzalez/Douglas instead of White on Sunday, especially when the game became so lopsided on the scoreboard. White was likely preserved somewhat as he was not 100% health wise and the Giants put forward a feeble effort. White was able to pick up a first down on a curl route to move the chains and again on a slant over the middle. White had a chance at a bomb down the field from Ryan but the Giants DB made an excellent pass break up at the last moment to deny the big play.

Week 16 - Roddy White turned in his best performance of the season. During the first half, White caught all four of his targets for 106 yards and two touchdowns. During the first quarter, Matt Ryan sold a play action fake and White beat Chris Houston down the right sideline for a 44-yard touchdown. Ryan recognized single coverage, Houston was caught staring at the ball rather than running with White, and White easily beat him for the score. During his team’s next drive, Ryan went back to White, but White’s vision and ability to run after the catch paced the touchdown. Ryan sold a fake toss to the right and threw the ball across his body to White. Tony Gonzalez’s block sprung White as he navigated into the open field and raced in for the 39-yard touchdown. During the second half, White caught four additional passes for 47 yards. White continued to feast on man coverage as he worked the middle of the field. Given Julio Jones’ presence, Detroit struggled to stop White from running freely across the middle. During the fourth quarter, White ran a deep post route and collected a 15-yard gain. However, he was tackled at the 1-yard line and fell inches short of his third touchdown grab.

Week 17 - After one of White’s best games in Week 16 (153 yards, two touchdowns), he was rather unimpressive in a great matchup against Tampa Bay’s beatable secondary. Despite 10 targets, White had just 42 yards without a significant contribution to the passing game. Matt Ryan did him no favors by leading him into a huge hit on a crossing route and misfiring with poor accuracy on at least two occasions. White did not seem himself on deep targets as he failed to locate the ball in the air, one of his strengths during his career. White made just one reception outside of quick-hitting plays, a deep in-cut down the middle. Both White and Julio Jones struggled to find any chemistry with Ryan all day. For a team that has struggled mightily in previous post-seasons, this was not a good final tune-up for their big game in two weeks following a bye week.

Week 19 - White paced Falcons receivers in receiving yards with seventy-six. Most of quarterback Matt Ryan’s pass completions to White were of the short-to-intermediate variety, but the two did connect in the second quarter for a forty-seven yard touchdown. White ran a deep post-in route, beating cornerback Richard Sherman and linebacker Kam Chancellor in coverage, and extended his arms to reel in a perfectly thrown deep ball from Matt Ryan. Falling forward, White completed the catch for the score. White missed another opportunity to put six on the scoreboard, on the Falcons’ first drive of the game. He ran a stutter-and-go route in an attempt to shake off Richard Sherman, and followed that move up with a crossing route, but Sherman shadowed White the entire way, and batted away Ryan’s pass to White in the end zone. White was the intended receiver on Ryan’s second interception against the Seahawks. While he ran a go route down the left side of the field, Seahawks safety Earl Thomas read Ryan in the pocket. Watching Ryan eye White – who was already covered – Thomas followed Ryan’s pass and got over top of Garcon to intercept the ball. White had practically no shot of catching the underthrown pass. White tied Julio Jones for the Falcons’ target lead with ten, and figures to see plenty of work when the Falcons host San Francisco in the franchise’s first home conference championship.

Week 20 - While White took a backseat to Julio Jones with the big plays, he had a very solid game in his own right against San Francisco. White was the possession receiver as always, making the key receptions against single coverage. Like the rest of the Falcons’ offense, White struggled in the second half. After 91 yards in the first 30 minutes, White had just a single reception in the second half. He saw a deep target, a likely touchdown, but it was broken up by the defensive back in tight coverage on the play. On what was essentially Atlanta’s last chance to win the game, a fourth down play in the red zone, White was well-covered and could not haul in a short crossing route target. With Michael Turner fading in 2012 and Tony Gonzalez possibly not returning in 2013, White and Julio Jones could be even bigger parts of the offense in 2013.